Rising Kite - A story from the world of HWFWM

Kite’s body was still tingling with gradually decreasing tension as he walked through the corridors of the adventure society’s lower complex. Darnos, the draconian gold-ranker who apparently oversaw the Task Group in this part of the world, walked at his side and had talked amicably of his impressions of the short but intense combat in which Kite had suddenly found himself just a few minutes before.

“-and since a few too many recruits having made their way here through more nepotism than actual merit, we felt that a bit of an ‘organic’ scenario was appropriate to prove that you were not just some greenhouse flower. We need people with actual experience in the task group, people who have met the worst kinds of essence users and not just survived, but thrived in such opposition. I tend to oversee recruitment personally too, but I am unsure if that truly helps, as I believe that some are willing to go quite far to make a connection.”

As Darnos, apparently fond of talking, continued to explain the purpose of said trial, Kite couldn’t help but keep part of his attention on the three silver-rankers who accompanied them. In front walked the man who Kite had actually been fighting. He was a human man with a swarthy complexion and short-trimmed curly dark hair. During his brief introduction where he had given the name Ryker, Kite got the distinct impression that the man didn’t like him very much.

Behind Kite and Darnos came the other two. Christine was an elf with pale skin, blonde straight hair and a casual attitude almost boarding on insubordinate, giving off an utterly relaxed feel as soon as the short conflict was over. Walking beside her was Mtanga, a heavyset man with ebony skin and a shaved head. Even though Kite did not look directly at him, Mtanga seemed to notice the scrutiny as he smiled brightly and waved to Kite’s back.

Apparently Darnos had noted Kite’s partly wandering attention too, as a nudge of aura brought Kite back to their conversation.

“I hope you understand, recruit, that their actions were not personal. As I said, we do this test to everyone, albeit under varying conditions depending on where they apply. The test is meant to test your reactions and quick-thinking, as well as to show off the importance of teamwork and coordination through putting you on the receiving end. Even if the latter fell a bit shorter than usual this time, wouldn’t you say, Ryker?”

The man in front only grunted in response, causing Darnos to smile. “Their goal was to get a suppression collar on you as quickly as possible, you see. As long as you put up an adequate fight and made sound decisions, being collared wouldn’t have meant losing your chance at becoming a recruit for the task group. Three on one when ambushed are simply odds that one rarely beats, but some, like you, can do well enough to at least have a chance at escape. As I said, well done, especially for an outsider.”

“Thank you, master Darnos,” Kite replied after some hesitation. “But I must admit that I am unsure if that last statement is praise or derision.”

“Oh? Oh, the outsider part? Sorry, I forget that you haven’t got much insight in the greater adventure society. It was praise, recruit, and some well-earned at that. With outsider, I mean that you have no parent or other close relation working within the society. A lot of our members have, making their whole adventuring careers center around the society’s workings, be it through the task groups or other projects. Both Ryker and Christine have basically grown up within the adventure society, and thus we know them well. But we also need outside perspective, and that is where recruits like you come in.”

“And like senior Mtanga too?” Kite asked, turning to give a nod to the man, whose smile only widened.

“A truthful deduction,” Darnos nodded in agreement. “But their origins isn’t why either of the three are here. They are assistant supervisors for these trials, and will help train and evaluate this batch of recruits in which you are part. As I have duties elsewhere most of the time, I will leave you in their capable hands. But trust that I will be informed of all of your progress, and I hope to work with you again in the future, should you pass.”

The draconian turned around, nodding to each of the silver-rankers. “Gentlemen. Lady. I bid you a good day.” With a small surge of mana, space folded in on the draconian for one mind-boggling moment, and then he was gone.

Neither of the silver-rankers broke their stride, even Kite having seen plenty of magical departures in his adventuring career so far. Instead he chose to address the other three.

“Then I suppose I will be in your care, seniors. May I ask what is next?”

“As assistant supervisors, you will address us as sir or ma'am, depending on the preferences of the individual,” Ryker said curtly without looking at Kite where he walked ahead. “You are in the wider world now, and need to adapt your speech to better fit-”

“What would you have called me back home?” Christine said, interrupting Ryker with a question brimming with curiosity.

“Well, that depends. In this case, it would probably be senior, or senior sister if I knew you better. Or mistress, had you status akin to master Darnos,” Kite answered, carefully schooling his features into that of thoughtful deliberation as Ryker now actually did turn, leveling a glare at the elven woman.

“Oh, that sounds pretty nice, actually. Recruit, I hereby want you to call me senior sister.” Christine stated as Ryker’s glare intensified.

“It would be my honor, senior sister. Please, call me Kite. And add a ‘junior brother’ when you feel like it.”

“Before you ask, things went splendid. A nice and polite young man,” Darnos said as soon as he appeared in the office where an elven man with a blonde side-cut and eyes like glowing blue orbs had just looked up and opened his mouth to speak.

“Sir, I know that you like observing for yourself, but it really isn’t necessary for you to waste your-”

“Ilmaril, you know that we gold-rankers rarely do things we don’t want, like or find necessary,” Darnos interrupted with a raised eyebrow. “And you know that you can call me Darnos. You’re a gold too now.”

“I understand, sir, but with your seniority, it just isn’t prudent,” Ilmaril deflected, changing the subject. “But you found the candidate to your liking?”

“At least he gave a good initial impression. Isolated himself and Ryker, fighting him off for a while and positioning himself to escape when Chirstine and Mtanga broke through. I suspect that Ryker’s pride took a bit of a hit, which might cause his loyalty to the adventure society to escalate a bit in their future interactions. The recruit is a Hua-Xian, after all.”

“I read his file,” Ilmaril confirmed. “While his heritage might give pause, he wouldn’t be recommended by two branch directors for nothing. From those of his powers that were described in the report, I can see him slotting well into most configurations, but pairing him up with recruit Steiner should be an obvious synergy. I will talk with Ryker and make sure that he lets his displeasure be shown within reasonable limits.”

“I don’t believe that will be needed. Better to try and let the young work it out between themselves first, or you might just dig a chasm between them,” Darnos counseled. “Just keep an eye on things. But you are the supervisor of this batch of tests after all, so I suppose that is advice most unneeded.”

“I will continue to do my best, sir Darnos,” Ilmaril said, back straightening.

“I don’t doubt it,” Daros responded, clapping the other man’s shoulder as he passed. “Send me the reports of the recruits after the testing is done. There seem to be some interesting sets of powers among this batch, some which might be able to give even an old drake like me some inspiration.”

That same evening, Kite let out a groan as he lay down on his bed. The adventure society had assigned him a modest but comfortable room in which he would stay during the tests that were to come. And from what Ryker, Christine and Mtanga had informed him, there were a lot of them.

“I may be a silver ranker now, but even my head can go spinning trying to comprehend all of this,” he muttered, thinking of all that was to come. Even so, he got up a little while later. His mind may have been a bit exhausted, but there was still plenty of restlessness left in his body, so he left his room to visit the small training area which he had been told was free to use for all of the recruits.

As he walked along the tunnel outside of his little room, he saw several similar doors which indicated that there might be up to a dozen recruits present. While the training complex was all underground, there were plenty of skylights providing glimpses of the sky above, in this case showing the deep purple of dusk.

Following the signs, it was easy to find his way to the robust training area; essentially a blocky stone room. Still, it was sizable enough to accommodate a silver-ranker’s needs, especially one like Kite whose powers usually did not need much space.

“Wall.”

A moment after having muttered his spell chant, the room was filled with a rather chaotic and complex series of force walls, the panes having different angles and configurations. They filled out a lot of the spacious chamber, and Kite was already starting his run into the impromptu obstacle course. Smaller, more fragile squares of force appeared beneath his feet, and he lost himself in navigating as much of the complex environment he could while retaining as much speed as possible.

Since its ascension to silver rank, the additional flexible mobility which Leyline Warding now offered was something Kite was still working on utilizing properly. His week spent with Soul had given him some ideas, but also the stark reminder that he needed to incorporate altitude more into his thoughts on positioning. Silver-rank meant that powers like flight or the like were a lot more common, and while projecting his attacks through his intent helped somewhat, Kite knew that he needed to give himself even more options.

That was why he was quite engrossed with trying out different rolls, sudden turns and other maneuvers when another aura flared in greeting at the entrance to the training hall. Kite was a bit proud that he managed to come to a somewhat dignified stop, having just come out of a mid-air roll across some conjured platforms ending in a crouch.

The newcomer was a fair-skinned human woman with wavy, strawberry blonde hair who stood looking up at Kite with an amused expression. She was a silver ranker like him, dressed in a simple blouse and pants which looked like something Kite would have expected Rachel or Phiona Geller to wear on a leisurely day. The woman's aura gave off the feel of a sharp, almost suffocating force even though Kite sensed no hostility from her.

“That looks rather fun. Mind if I join in?”

Kite had first expected some kind of snarky comment from her posture and expression, but the questions seemed genuine enough.

“Of course,” he answered. “Tempering oneself is always best done in company.”

His words got a raised eyebrow in response, but she soon stepped forward and lifted into the air as a slight ripple enveloped her body. While she did so through some kind of flight power, she followed Kite’s lead as she started navigating the odd angles of Kite’s barrier-maze at what speed she could, emulating his way of kicking off some barriers or shifting the magic that carried her body more abruptly.

While their mutual training was done in relative silence, Kite looked her way as he shifted up the configuration of the barriers, getting a smirk of what he suspected to be approval in return. He did not know exactly how long they practiced like that, caught up in the slight competitive spirit that started to grow as they both raced to find more efficiency and beat each other’s time. In an open environment, there was no question that the woman would beat him handedly, but the complex maze of obstacles gave him what he needed to keep up. At least to a point.

“I believe that senior sister has me beaten,” Kite eventually said, touching down on the ground. Even his enhanced body had started to feel a bit exhausted after the rising tempo, but that had been just what he was there for, after all.

“Senior… sister?” she asked, still smirking as she touched down next to him.

“Ah, my apologies. In my homeland, it is an honorific added when addressing someone of similar station who is still more experienced. Would you prefer - what was it? - ma’am?”

At that, she actually laughed. Kite felt a bit sheepish but did his best to hide beneath a mask of politeness.

“Ah, sorry, sorry,” she eventually said, wiping imaginary tears from the corner of one eye. “It’s just that ma’am sounds like you’re talking to my mother. I’m not that old yet,” she said, eyes gleaming. “Besides, just Amica is fine. Amica Steiner. If we are to be trained and evaluated together, best keep it simple, no?”

“That would be preferable,” Kite agreed, still confused about the whole ‘ma’am’ title. There was apparently quite a lot of nuance to these foreign honorifics as well. “My name is Kite Flown in on Winds of Fortune, but please call me Kite.”

“Your name is…” she began, smirk growing. “You sure are an odd one. Oh, don’t take it like that. Odd is nice. I don’t think normal people end up where we are,” Amica said, adding the last part as she saw Kite’s slight wince. “Still, that name though. Is that the type of name most people get where you are from? And, speaking of, where are you from?”

Amica’s questions ended up leading to a rather lengthy explanation where Kite told her about Hua-Xi and its naming conventions. She had apparently never heard about the country before, and kept him on track with question after question.

“-and as such, she was named Auspicious Winter Raven,” Kite said, finishing his telling of his rather unique family situation. “How are things where you are from, if I may ask?” Getting his own questions in had been decidedly challenging, and Amica proved as evasive now as before.

“You may, but I believe it is an answer you will have another day. We’d best get some sleep. You can expect quite a lot of testing tomorrow if my experience is anything to go by,” Amica said, winking at Kite as she floated up in the air and started back towards the corridors housing their quarters. “Thanks for the exercise, and see you soon.”

As Amica left, Kite couldn’t help but smile a bit as he thought back to their interactions. Maybe it wouldn’t be so hard to make some friends in this foreign land as he had thought.

Amica Steiner kept her smile as she floated back to her room. Things were really going her way lately. She had worked hard, very hard, to get where she was now. Task Group Gauntlet would be the best chance she would ever have to realize her goals. Those cultists and all other scum like them… Through the task group, she would have the chance to put them all down.

The little cute foreigner with the fancy words was an added bonus, though. There was something innocent about him, even if she had felt plenty of steel in his aura too. Still, that slight naiveté and the way he looked at the world… Amica just couldn’t wait to see what kind of a playmate he would be, or could be molded into.

“But more testing first I suppose,” she muttered, sighing as her telekinesis closed the door behind her. “The adventure society sure is thorough with their evaluations. Just grit your teeth and show them, Amica. Show them that you will always be the one ending up in control.”

The next morning, Kite had been served a nice breakfast by a functionary before being given some time to prepare himself. He was still mulling over the culinary experience as he meditated in his room, floating around half a meter over the floor.

“-and I wonder what kind of fruit was in that porridge. It was of the correct rank, so it can’t just be grown anywhere? Or can it? The mana is so rich here, after all.”

Glint seemed to agree with him, as she had dug into the portion offered her with great abandon. One could tell that the adventure society was used to dealing with exotic familiars and various dietary needs, even if they could always fall back to spirit coins if the need arose.

Kite was brought out of his reverie by another aura announcing itself at the door. The functionary from before had returned.

“If you would accompany me, recruit, I will show you to the testing area. We would ask you to not venture there unless called upon, as the initial testing is intended to be without outside observation,” the bronze-ranker said while she started guiding Kite through a new section of the underground complex. There wasn’t too much foot-traffic, but Kite did spy a glimpse of a silver-ranked runic man being led down another corridor by another functionary. This short look almost had him stop dead in his tracks.

The reason for this was not that the runic had an exceptional aura or dressed in any particular way, nor that he gave Kite any obvious attention. No, it was the fact that he had hair. Most runics Kite had met or seen had bald heads, making their sigil-like glowing markings stand out even more. But not only did this runic have hair, but said hair turned out not to be of the conventional type.

As the man had just passed, one of the thick, dark green strands on the man’s head had raised itself from where it was gathered up in a low ponytail, locked eyes with Kite and hissed. Because it turned out that the runic had snakes growing out of his head where his hair would be.

“That…” Kite thought, a bit stunned. “Had I not had the enhanced memory, I would surely have thought myself still dreaming.”

The functionary ahead of him hadn’t noticed, and Kite was forced to gather his wits again as he was led to an impressive set of doors.

“If you would please step through, the supervisors will instruct you from there,” Kite’s guide said, gesturing towards the doors before leaving. Kite didn’t even have time to thank the man, who had conjured a cloud beneath his feet which carried him off and around a corner in short order. Left with few other options, Kite steadied his spirit and entered the testing complex.

What surprised him upon entering was that said testing complex was surprisingly small. The neatly clean room was dominated by some huge console facing a kind of glass pane, its purpose unknown to Kite. There were a dozen alcoves in the surrounding walls, each roomy enough for a person of any species to lay down on, as well as some rows of benches and tables also facing the console and glass pane.

Four people awaited Kite. He immediately recognized Ryker, Mtanga and Christine, the former giving Kite a curt nod as he entered while the expressions of the other two were more friendly. There was also another man present, a gold-ranked elf with blonde hair and eyes like two glowing, blue orbs. He too had turned to Kite upon his entrance, and Kite could feel the elf’s aura sweep through his in a thorough scan that would be considered quite rude under normal social circumstances. But as Kite found himself in an underground complex that housed some rather advanced magical infrastructure with the distinct purpose of being evaluated, he did not dwell on it, instead focusing his spirit to keep his aura as steady as possible.

“Greetings, recruit,” the gold-ranker eventually said. “My name is Ilmaril Thenston, and I am the supervisor of this batch of recruitment of Task Group Gauntlet. While you will receive a dossier with the relevant details, I will also provide you with a brief summary as part of your introduction.”

The supervisor spoke with the crisp discipline of a man who expected to be obeyed. His aura felt like something inescapable; like if you were caught in his grasp, there would be no means of escape except by his mercy. Kite chose to only nod in acquiescence, saving his words for later. The second nod he received from the gold-ranker gave the indication that this was a wise move.

“As you should already know, Task Group Gauntlet is one of the specialized collections of adventurers within the adventure society with specific expertise in handling other essence users, either to bring in alive or to take down permanently. I have served with the task group since silver rank, soon to reach my twentieth year of being part of Gauntlet. During this time I have faced the worst that people have to offer, be it ruthless bandits and pirates to cunning charlatans or those who use restricted essences. Most of them have been downright scum, but a lot have instead believed themselves to be the odd one out, the one who will not cause undue harm. The special ones. No matter their motivations, all of them have inflicted suffering and loss upon the people of this world, the people the adventure society exists to protect.

Most members of Task Group Gauntlet are specialists called in for specific contracts where the adventure society deems their specific expertise necessary, with a few eventually moving onto a more long-term retainer. Only time will tell if this will be your path, but the evaluations that are to come during the following days will determine if you have what it takes, what further training you will need and if you have the mind and spirit to go up against some of the worst which the world has to offer.

That is why we need you to be honest, recruit. With us in regards to your capabilities, powers and experiences. And to yourself. If you, at any time, find that this is not for you, then you are free to walk away without any repercussions. There is no shame in admitting one’s limits.

Have I made myself clear, recruit?”

“Yes… Sir,” Kite replied, belatedly adding the honorific.

“Knowing this, do you wish to proceed with today’s tests and evaluations?”

As he had done many times before in his life, Kite took a moment to think. Then he nodded his acquiescence. “Yes Sir.”

Ilmaril gave Kite one long look with those glowing blue orbs, his aura washing through Kite’s yet again. There were moments of spiritual pressure, gradually increasing in frequency and intensity. As this went on, Kite’s spirit started straining more and more until his aura was eventually pushed back all the way to total suppression. With his increased aura strength in that regard, it had been quite some time since Kite felt the exposed, vulnerable feeling this always brought. Then, the gold-ranked aura retreated.

“Initial assessment would be eight points in spiritual defenses,” Ilmaril said, the assistant supervisors nodding. For a silver-ranker, no note-taking was needed for such basic information. Once more addressing Kite, he nodded. “As you may have surmised, we will judge your abilities on a grade from one to ten. All applicants are expected to have a spread, and the highest score is very, very rare. Eight points is an excellent mark, recruit. We will see how you do in the tests that are to come.”

Kite was about to ask a question when Ryker seemed to decide that it was time to break in.

“Lay down on that bench over there,” he said, gesturing to one of the alcoves.

Kite started to walk over, but halted midway.

“May I ask what this device means to test? Sir?” he asked, adding the honorific after Ryker raised a stern eyebrow at him. Said sternness quickly melted away to disbelief, however.

“Are you serious, recruit? Don’t you know what this is?” he asked, his tone grating on even Kite’s patience. “I believe that you are the first recruit to ever ask that question.”

“What Ryker should be explaining, junior brother,” Christine broke in, emphasizing the familiar term even though the elf’s posture was as relaxed as before when she sent the barb towards her colleague, “- is that this is a mirage chamber.”

Apparently noting Kite’s dawning understanding, her smile grew. “See, Ryker. He knows what it is. Not everyone has all but grown up in them like we have.” All Christine got was a flat look in return, so she continued her explanation. “We will use it to simulate scenarios for you where we can test your powers to their limits. It will start basic, very basic, but don’t worry. Things will heat up in no time.”

Her words washed away Kite’s frustration, replacing it with growing excitement. “Thank you, senior sister. While I believe that I will need some more guidance in how to use it, I am most looking forward to this.”

“Oh, you don’t need to worry about that, recruit. Just lay down, and the chamber will do the rest. And I promise you that you have quite the experience ahead of you. Make sure to enjoy the ride,” Christine finished with a sly wink.

“I can’t believe that I let you talk me into this,” Soul grumbled among the steaming hot water.

“And yet you haven’t left for an hour,” Dragonfly teased from where she rested at the opposite edge of the hot spring. “The poor Eden family had tried to offer you this comfort the whole time, and you denied them the opportunity to actually be proper hosts.”

“Well, they sure seem to like you. The master of the house seems to have not end of praise of our recent exploits,” Soul said sourly, while still not making any moves to escape the hot, soothing water which was not, by any metric, making its warmth seep deeper and deeper into her body, letting out tensions she didn’t even know could exist. At least that was what Soul kept telling herself.

“Heh, yeah, it has been a fun few weeks. Decent monster hunting, and that little quarrel we had with those twins supporting the Ember family? Epic carnage. Who knew that a bit of directed training could make clashing with other essence users so much more fun?”

“Only every proper warrior to ever walk these lands.”

“It was a rhetorical question. Shut up,” Dragonfly countered, conjuring another burst of flame beneath the water to heat it up even more. Silver-rankers needed quite the scald to get that proper hot spring feeling, after all. “But speaking of warriors, have you given any more thought to my offer?”

“To come and join that little guild of yours? I won’t lie in that easier access to the Pathbreaker has its appeal, but otherwise I don’t see the point. Better to work on my own path.”

“Well, I believe that your path has fared well from a bit of variety. Didn’t you admit just the other day that the recent monster hunts has given you some inspiration?”

“I… said no such thing.” Soul said, a bit too quickly. Still, by now Dragonfly knew better than to push it.

“Please think on it at least,” she pushed, deciding to go all out now that it was her final day staying at Boundary. “Because you know what?”

“What?” Soul asked, sensing the trap but deciding to walk straight into it anyway.

“Typical Soul,” Dragonfly thought, the steamy waters hiding her smirk as she spoke. “I think that even you get lonely.”

“What? That is-”

“I believe that you like the company, at least the right kind of company, and that you would thrive in a place where you could both train yourself and others while widening your views, “Dragonfly pressed. “And besides, it would be good to have allies if that old scumbag sect of yours came after you too. You’re good, Soul. The best I have ever fought. But even you can’t just smack down all of their elders at once, should they decide to throw honor to the wind.”

“A proper warrior-”

“I know, Soul, I know. But I also know that a proper warrior is still a person. You can be both. Please, for these weeks we have spent together, promise me that you’ll at least think about it.”

Silence reigned over the hot spring. Dragonfly was pondering if she should prepare herself for a naked wrestling match within a hot spring when Soul sank just a little deeper into the water.

“Fine. I promise to think about it,” came the surly, bubbled answer, making Dragonfly a bit relieved yet oddly disappointed at not having to play out some teenager’s wildest fantasies.

“Thank you, Soul. You truly are the most thoughtful of warriors,” Dragonfly teased, earning herself a slight splash from the other woman.

Silence reigned yet again, Dragonfly luxuriating in the comforts of the bath. This time, it was Soul who broached the next topic. “What about you then, what will you do now that you are leaving?”

“Honestly? I don’t know exactly?” Dragonfly said, laying back to float in the warm water while looking up at the overcast evening sky. “Staying here with you has taught me a lot. Like, a lot of a lot. I can’t wait to go out here and duel someone to keep working on all those pointers you have given me. But that still isn’t the thing for me. Sure, you have many different things in your life, at least that is what master Force told me, and I still haven’t really found my next thing yet. Well, I know one thing, but that is the thing I cannot tell you about.”

“That again?” Soul grumbled. “Oh, well, keep your secrets.”

“So as to what I will do… I guess it is still up to the future to show me. My path will climb ever onwards though, that is for sure. And I will miss you, Soul.”

Seeing the other woman freeze at the earnest confession, Dragonfly couldn’t help but smile inwardly. “I guess that this is part of why Kite does it,” she thought as she witnessed the martial artist seeking to perfect herself wrestling with something as simple as straightforward affection.

And it was on that fateful night that Dragonfly Over Sun’s Reflection witnessed something hitherto unseen in the lands of Hua-Xi, and something which might never be seen again. On the eve before her departure, Soul, blessed of Warrior and seeker of perfection… blushed.

“I… Will miss you. Too.”